COSCO Pacific buys Taicang terminal stake from parent

Friday, January 25, 2013

The terminal operator COSCO Pacific (China) has agreed to acquire a stake in the Taicang International Container Terminal (TICT) from its parent company China Ocean Shipping Co. (COSCO).
The deal will see COSCO transfer a 39.04 percent share to its terminal operating subsidiary. According to TICT’s Website, COSCO maintains a 45.9 percent share of the terminal, which is majority owned by Hong Kong-based Modern Terminals.
Taicang is a terminal on the Yangtze River near Shanghai. It gained prominence in North America two years ago when startup liner carrier The Containership Co. started a direct service between Taicang and the U.S. West Coast to tap into demand for exports from the region just inland from Shanghai.
Meanwhile, COSCO Pacific also said Friday it has issued $300 million in guaranteed notes due 2023.
The notes will be “used primarily for the capital investment for the expansion of the group’s terminal and container leasing businesses, the repayment of the group’s existing indebtedness, and general corporate purposes,” COSCO Pacific said in a statement. - Eric Johnson